5 Little-Known Pinterest Features You Should Be Using

pinterest features you should be using

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If you’re like most Pinterest users, you probably think you’ve got the platform figured out. You create boards, pin images, and maybe even share your finds with friends. 

But did you know that Pinterest has a ton of hidden gems that can totally level up your experience? 

Trust me, as someone who spends way too much time on the app, I’ve discovered some seriously game-changing features that most people don’t even know exist. 

In this blog post, I’ll be spilling the beans on 5 of my favorite lesser-known Pinterest hacks that are gonna make your life so much easier (and more inspiring!).

1. Pinterest Lens

You know that feeling when you see something super cool, like a piece of furniture or an awesome outfit, and you just have to find out where to get it? 

Well, say hello to Pinterest Lens – your new best friend for visual search and discovery. 

This nifty feature lets you snap a pic with your phone’s camera or upload an existing image to get a wealth of related Pins and ideas.

What is Pinterest Lens?

Pinterest Lens takes image recognition to another level by analyzing objects, scenes, colors, patterns – you name it – and serving up a page full of visually similar content. 

It’s like having a personal stylist slash interior designer right in your pocket!

How to Use Pinterest Lens

Using Lens is ridiculously simple:

  • Open up the Pinterest app and tap the little camera icon in the search bar. 
  • Point and shoot whatever catches your eye – a trendy throw pillow, a drool-worthy dessert, your neighbor’s beautiful flower garden, etc.
  • Or if you’ve already got a pic saved, just tap to upload it from your camera roll.

In an instant, Pinterest’s super-smart AI will dissect your image and show you a bunch of related Pins to explore. 

It’s honestly kind of magical.

But wait, there’s more! 

Pinterest Lens can also identify specific products within images. See a lamp you love? Snap it, and Lens will likely pull up shoppable product listings so you can score that very lamp (or something very similar). 

It’s basically like having a real-life Pokemon Snap but for home decor, fashion, recipes, and just about anything else your heart desires. Gotta ‘Lens ’em all!

2. Pinterest Saved Section

Have you ever spent way too much time pinning and repinning like a crazy person, only to lose track of all that awesome content somewhere in your labyrinth of boards? 

I feel you. That’s why the Pinterest Saved section is an absolute game-changer when it comes to staying organized.

What is the Pinterest Saved Section?

Think of it like a master catalog for everything you’ve ever pinned, conveniently gathered in one spot. 

No more endlessly scrolling through boards named things like “Living Room Inspo” and “Kitchen Reno Ideas” trying to find that one pin you saved last year. 

The Saved section puts all your pins front and center for easy access and browsing.

How to Use the Pinterest Saved Section  

It’s stupidly simple to find and use:

  • Just tap the little bookmark icon at the bottom of your Pinterest app. Bam – there’s your Saved section!
  • By default, your saved pins are organized by the board they came from. But you can also create custom sections to group related pins in any way you like.
  • For example, make a “Dream Home” section for pins related to interior design, a “Wanderlust” one for travel inspo, and maybe even a “McDreamy” section…you know, for research purposes. Don’t worry, ladies, your secrets are safe with me!

The possibilities are endless for categorizing your pins in whatever way makes the most sense to you. It’s the ultimate pinning power move.

But that’s not all! 

Within the Saved section, you can easily filter pins by content type like Products, Ideas, Videos, and more. 

So, if you’re in the mood to online window shop, you can quickly pull up just product pins. Trying to plan an epic vacay? The travel video pins have got you covered.

Long story short, this feature is a must for any serious pinner who wants to cut through the clutter and have all their carefully curated inspiration right at their fingertips. 

Your overstuffed boards will be a hot mess no more!

3. Pinterest Board Insights

Alright, raise your hand if you’re obsessed with analytics and data? No, just me? 

Well, even if numbers aren’t your thing, Pinterest’s Board Insights are honestly too good to ignore – especially if you’re using the platform for business or blog promotion. 

This powerful feature gives you a behind-the-scenes look at how all of your pins are performing. It’s like getting a sneak peek at the stats that make the Pinterest gods smile upon your content.

What are Pinterest Board Insights?

Board Insights is essentially an analytics dashboard tailored specifically to each of your boards. It tracks all the juicy metrics like impressions, re-pins, engaged viewers, and more. 

With this data at your fingertips, you can quickly see which pins are crushing it and which ones might need a little extra love to really pop off.

How to Use Pinterest Board Insights

Checking your Board Insights is super easy:

  1. Open up the Pinterest app and head to your profile 
  2. Select the board you want the stats on
  3. Tap that “Board Insights” button 
  4. …And just like that, a whole world of data will be laid out before your very eyes!

Within the insights, you can filter stats by specific date ranges to analyze performance over time. You can even see indicators of which content types (idea pins, product pins, etc) are getting the most traction on that board.

But my favorite part? 

The “Top Pins” section that highlights your real superstars – the pins that are just absolutely slaying the game with maximum engagement, re-pins, and the like. 

Studying what made those pins so insanely popular can provide some serious strategic inspiration for future content.

Whether you’re a blogger looking to boost traffic, an entrepreneur promoting products, or just a data geek who loves crunching numbers, Board Insights gives you a crucial competitive edge. 

With the ability to see what’s resonating with your audience and what’s falling flat, you can refine and optimize your pinning strategy for maximum success. 

Who wouldn’t want that kinda insider intel?

4. Pinterest Secret Boards

We’ve all been there – you’re innocently pinning away when BAM, you stumble across something so deliciously cringeworthy that you absolutely cannot let it taint your impeccable digital tastemaker reputation. 

Whether it’s hilariously bad fashion fails or weirdly unsettling crafting tutorials, some pins are just meant for your eyes only.

Enter: Pinterest’s super underrated secret boards! 

These semi-private digital vaults are a safe space to hide away all those guilty pleasure finds without subjecting the world to your questionable fascinations.

What are Pinterest Secret Boards?

Essentially, secret boards are normal Pinterest boards cloaked in a veil of anonymity. Only you (and anyone you opt to share the board with) can view the scandalous contents within. 

It’s the perfect way to indulge your curiosities or sort through inspiration you’re not quite ready to unleash on the unsuspecting public.

How to Create a Pinterest Secret Board

Making a secret board is easy peasy:

  1. Tap the little plus icon to create a new board from your profile
  2. Before giving it a name, toggle on the “Keep this board secret” option
  3. Voila! Your covert Pinterest Board is ready for all the weird, wild, or just plain bonkers pins your heart desires

I’ve got to admit, I have a few hilariously niche secret boards of my own. There’s one dedicated to truly terrible yet impressive cake fails, and maybe even one chronicling my obsession with Samuel L. Jackson’s iconic hair choices. What can I say? We all have our things!

The beauty of secret boards is that your mind is free to wander and curate whatever oddball collections it fancies without any social scrutiny. 

So go ahead and get as delightfully bizarre as you want – your repinning secrets are safe with Pinterest!

5. Pinterest Keyboard Shortcuts (Desktop Only) 

Listen up, efficiency addicts! If you spend any significant amount of time browsing Pinterest on your desktop or laptop, you need to get familiar with their handy keyboard shortcuts. 

These little hotkey combos are a total timesaver, letting you quickly perform common actions without all the extra clicks and taps.

What are Pinterest Keyboard Shortcuts?

Put simply, keyboard shortcuts are pre-programmed key combos that act as microcontrollers, triggering specific commands or behaviors within the Pinterest interface. 

Instead of hunting through menus or endlessly clicking your left mouse button, you can instantly carry out tasks with just a couple of quick taps.

Useful Pinterest Keyboard Shortcuts

While Pinterest has a whole suite of shortcuts to memorize, here are some of my favorite  time-savers:

  • N = Create a new board in a snap
  • P = Rapidly pin that inspiring image or idea
  • R = Instantly re-pin to spread the inspiration 
  • L = Leave a like on the fly to show your appreciation
  • J/K = Scroll through pins up and down with ease

Once you get the muscle memory down, you’ll be zipping around Pinterest like a pro. No more excessive clicking, scrolling, or hunting through menus to get stuff done!

I’ll be honest, I was a keyboard shortcut skeptic at first. But after accidentally smashing a few random key combos and discovering their magic, I was hooked. 

There’s something so satisfying about furiously tapping “RRR” to rapid-fire repin a whole gridline of drool-worthy food pics onto my “Feed Me” board.

Of course, the shortcuts only work on the desktop version of Pinterest. But for anyone who spends their work hours staring at a computer monitor, they’re an absolute must. 

Why work harder when you can lazily scroll and hotkey your way to pinning?

Wrapping Things up

There you have it – five seriously underrated Pinterest features that are going to completely transform how you use the visual platform. From the mind-blowingly cool visual search powers of Lens to the data-driven insights that’ll help you rule the internet, these hidden gems have got you covered.

But you don’t have to take my word for it. Go forth and start playing around! I promise you’ll quickly discover how these clever little tricks can help streamline your pinning process, get you unstuck from inspirational ruts, feed your curiosities (and weird obsessions), and so much more. 

The pinning potential is honestly limitless once you start taking advantage of Pinterest’s full suite of tools and customizations. 

So what are you waiting for? There’s a whole world of fresh inspiration and productive pinning just waiting to be unlocked!

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